Simon Says
by fantasyBOX
Summary: Oneshot.AU. Allen and Lenalee attends the class gathering Lavi organised. As Lavi drags Allen and Lenalee into the game, one simple action would either ruin Allen and Lenalee's friendship or bring it to a whole new level. What would the outcome be?


**This story is set in an alternate universe. Thus, they do not have weapons and all.**

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Disclaimer: -man, along with it's characters, belongs to THE Katsura Hoshino sensei, NOT me. Only the idea for the story belongs to me in which I take full credit for. =D

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Under the moonlit night aboard a ship, several people were dancing in pairs. They were moving in rhythm to a waltz; their steps slow and graceful. All of a sudden, the music changed into a fast-paced song, causing the people who were dancing to quickly get into rhythm. The passengers roared with laughter; be it the dancers or the audience, all were enjoying themselves with the random playing of music.

A young man wearing a long sleeved, white shirt with black pants was standing slightly away from the crowd. He was leaning against the railings of the ship, facing the direction of the sea. He was astounded by the scenery in front of him; it was a beautiful night as stars dotted the rich black sky with no clouds obstructing its path. Even the moon seemed to shine brighter than usual; its glow rivalled those of the stars. As the waves reflected the moonlight, the sea sparkled. This, to the young man, was a dance on its own.

"Allen?" a lady called out to him. "What are you doing over there?"

The lady wore a coat over her strapless top, along with jeans shorts. She had been enjoying herself looking at her friends dancing but upon noticing the silver-haired young man gazing off into the distance, she decided to accompany him instead.

"Hey Lenalee," Allen replied. "The scenery just captured my attention, that's all."

Allen's eyes were not on her; the wondrous view of the ocean at night had left him glued to the scenery. As Lenalee looked at Allen, she could not deny just how handsome he appeared; his silver hair looked more mystifying under the moonlight as it swayed in the breeze and the dreamy look in his eyes as he marvelled at the sight in front of him.

"Lenalee?"

Allen had noticed Lenalee staring at him.

"Sorry Allen," she apologised, blushing. "I shouldn't be staring."

Allen just smiled at her and directed his gaze back to the sea. It had been three years since Lenalee last saw Allen and that was when they were still classmates. Allen had been a transfer student and although he was a year younger than her, he was taller. As Lenalee compared the 17-year old Allen to the 20-year old standing in front of her, she realised that three years did nothing to spoil the good looks he had. So what if he had a scar over his left eye? So what if he had silver hair? Sure it made him stand out but he was after all still human.

She first met Allen when she was 14-years old. At that time, Allen had put up a psychological barrier around him and was a very quiet person. Lenalee, being Lenalee, sought to bring him out of his shell in which she succeeded, and learned of his past. He had a traumatic experience when he was a kid; kidnapped, scarred and his father dying in front of him. This all led to his hair turning white as he had recurring nightmares about the incident.

"We have not met for three years, Allen," she began. Plucking up her courage, she asked, "Are we still close friends?"

Allen shifted his gaze back to Lenalee, looking squarely into her deep violet eyes. He then embraced her and spoke into her ear, his voice firm, "You rescued me from solitude, Lenalee. We will always be friends and you can count on me to help you whenever you require it." He paused momentarily before adding,"That was our promise."

Allen released Lenalee from his hug and smiled at her with undeniable sincerity. Lenalee just stood there as she mentally slapped herself.

_Of all the questions, why that?_ She scolded silently. _Allen isn't the type to break a promise and you know it. I'm such an idiot!_

Lenalee hastily covered her mouth as she realised she was about to say it aloud. Allen was looking at her with an amused expression; it was like he knew what she was thinking during the few seconds of silence.

"Do you want to return to the dance, Allen?" Lenalee asked, changing the subject.

Allen gave a final glimpse towards the shimmering water. Stretching himself, he nodded, "Alright."

************

"Allen!" A red-haired young man called out to him rather dramatically. "Where have you been? We were about to begin the next segment of the programme!"

"Sorry Lavi," Allen apologised, "I was off looking at the stars."

"No worries," Lavi assured him. Looking at Lenalee then back at Allen, he asked while a grin slowly spread across his face, "You in?"

Apart from the overly suspicious smile on Lavi's face, Allen had no reason to reject. Looking at Lenalee who returned his unasked question with an equally confused expression, Allen slowly replied, "Okay."

"Great!" Lavi exclaimed. Turning to the rest of the people, Lavi explained the rules for "Simon Says".

"So, basically, as long as the sentence I say have the terms, Simon says, you have to follow it's orders," Lavi summarised.

"You're giving the commands, Lavi?" Allen asked hesitantly.

"Of course, I suggested having this class gathering and so, I should have the honours," he beamed.

Allen gulped. Lavi was full of nonsensical ideas and with his leading, there was bound to be some utterly ridiculously actions. Allen looked around the deck where his ex-classmates all stood. Some of them were excited about it, while some, like him, were unsure if it was a wise decision to join in after all.

Looking around the sae of faces, Allen discovered that one person was missing.

"What about Kanda?" Allen inquired.

"What about me, bean sprout?" Kanda demanded, emerging from the shadows. Allen was not surprise by Kanda's choice of entrance; he was already used to it.

"Are you playing?"

"Of course no-" Kanda began before being interrupted by the hyperly active bunny.

"Of course Yu's playing! Everyone has to participate!" Lavi shouted out from where he stood;amidst the people who he was explaining the rules to.

"Don't call me by my first name, stupid rabbit,"Kanda growled. "I'll kill you."

Lavi was not intimidated by Kanda's threat. Instead, he kept up his persistent persuasion to Kanda; saying things like,"I'll treat you to a one-year supply of soba."

"..."

"I'll buy you another fencing sword?" Lavi continued.

"I need only one."

"Well," Lavi sighed. "But I honestly believe that you will need a new one soon, unless you join in to play the game..."

"Huh?" Kanda replied almost spontaneously.

Sighing, Lavi pulled out Kanda's fencing sword from behind his back. Although Lavi revealed to Kanda only the metal tip of the sword, its glint had nonetheless caught Kanda's attention.

"What the..." Kanda cursed, "Give. Me. Back. My. Sword. Overgrown bunny."

"Yu," Lavi cooed. "Play the game otherwise I won't return it."

"Don't call me by my first name, retarded rabbit," Kanda snarled as he aimed to grasp Lavi by the neck, which Lava narrowly dodged. "What makes you think that I won't be able to take it back unless I play?"

"I'll toss it overboard while you get pressed down by the others."

"Why you..."

And so, the game began. Kanda kept to his side of the deal and joined in the game, earning himself the return of his metal buddy. However, the deal was not properly fulfilled as Kanda had purposely ignored the commands and got disqualified, just as the rules required of players who did not react fast enough, leaving Lavi to whine about what a wet blanket Kanda was. Kanda, being Kanda, retorted by raising his fencing sword to Lavi's throat, threatening to kill him if he does not shut up. Kanda also demanded why Lavi should not get his just desserts; a punishment worthy for stealing his possession. Lavi then whispered something to Kanda, inaudible to the others. There was a moment of silence before Kanda spoke again in a flat tone, "I don't give a damn with anything concerning the beansprout. I don't even get why you dragged me into the game in the first place, idiot rabbit."

Lenalee looked over at Allen only to find that he was looking back towards her with a confused expression. It was as clear as day that Allen had no idea what was going on, only that there was something concerning his well-being and safety.

_If Lavi's target of a joke is me, _Allen thought, _I should get out while I still can..._

There were many times when Allen wanted to lose on purpose, as demonstrated by Kanda, but the prize for the winner insisted for him to persist to the end; an all-you-can eat buffet voucher! Thus, Allen continued with the game, never taking his eyes off the prize.

After a few rounds, they reached the finals, where it was down to Allen and Lenalee. _This_ was what Lavi had been waiting for. Clearing his throat, Lavi stressed on each word with amazing articulation, "Simon says, kiss the remaining player on the lips!"

"What?!" They both exclaimed while their faces slowly turned red. Neither had expected Lavi to give this type of order.

"C'mon Allen," Lavi encouraged. "Just one more and you get the food voucher... and anyway, you guys have already hugged each other..."

Allen was staring at Lavi, mouth agape.

"You planned this, didn't you?" Allen asked but it sounded more like a statement.

Lavi was grinning ridiculously as the crowd looked on at the pair. They were all fidgeting with excitement as they wondered what Allen and Lenalee's actions would be.

"Lavi," Lenalee spoke this time. "You had already discussed this with the others... haven't you?"

"Always so perceptive, Lenalee," Lavi continued grinning madly. "So, what's it gonna be?"

Lenalee took Allen's hand and told him, "Let's go, Allen. This game is getting way out of hand."

_I should learn to control my appetite!_ Allen reprimanded himself mentally, _If only i wasn't such a glutton!_

As they tried to leave, the people encircled them and had thus blocked all means of escape. Therefore, Allen and Lenalee was trapped.

"Lavi, this is too much," Allen reasoned. "Don't you respect Lenalee?"

Lavi scratched the side of his face before responding, "I do. But a friendly peck on the lips don't mean anything right? Some countries do that as a form of greeting you know..."

"Lenalee's brother won't allow it."

"He's not here right now."

Allen stared at Lavi in disbelief. Lavi would settle for nothing less than seeing Allen kiss Lenalee on the lips. Okay, perhaps Allen did have some feelings for his benefactor but that did not mean that she could have felt the same way.

As Allen looked at Lenalee, hopelessness written all over his face, Allen realised that Lenalee's face was unlike his; her's was cringed with determination.

"Let's get it over with, Allen," Lenalee told him firmly. "They won't let us out otherwise."

"Wha-"

Allen's exclamation was silenced as Lenalee planted her lips against him before withdrawing away a moment later. The crowd cheered. Lavi burst out laughing. As Allen remained standing amidst the crowd, stupefied by the recent event, Lenalee went back to her room, her expression emotionless.

"Lavi," Allen called out to him, his tone menacing. "If this affects my friendship with Lenalee, you are getting it from me."

"Relax, Allen," Lavi paid no heed to the dangerous tone of Allen's. "I guarantee you that your relationship with her will no longer be that of friends but closer than that. I mean seriously, Lenalee rejected the many people that asked her out for a date. Anyone can tell that she's waiting for you to ask. C'mon, she's 21, and she hasn't even been on one date. Seven years since you first met her, seven years of waiting. Believe me, you seriously have to let her know how you feel about her."

It was all quiet as Allen thought about what Lavi had said.

"Am I really that dense?" Allen whispered to himself while Lavi mumbled something about finding Sachiko. "Does Lenalee really feel the same way about me?"

************

The party ended soon after Lenalee left, which was about 11 pm. However, Allen did not feel tired at all. He tossed and turned in his bed, trying to find the most comfortable position that would let sleep engulf him but to no avail. Then, about two in the morning, he gave up and decided to take a stroll around the ship.

Allen headed to the balcony, the place earlier where he stood gazing at the sky. He did not expect anyone to be there at this hour and so had a shock when he saw a silhouette against the dark sky. He froze when he realised who it was.

"Hi Lenalee," Allen addressed the figure, half embarrassed. "Couldn't you sleep?"

Lenalee shook her head, not even looking at him. "I'm sorry for what I did just now, Allen," She apologised. "If it affected you, I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, Lenalee," Allen assured her as he stood beside her. "You saved me again."

This time, Lenalee turned to look at Allen. He was wearing a casual tee this time with shorts that reached his knees, no doubt his attire for sleeping. Allen was looking right back into her eyes and as he opened his mouth to speak, his right hand reached for her left, "You saved me, Lenalee," he repeated himself, his voice steadier. "You ended it."

Jokingly, Allen added as he pointed to the area where the party was previously held, "If not, we could still be there right now, trapped, while Lavi continuing to egg us on."

Allen looked back at Lenalee as he heard a chuckle. She was facing the floor but her right hand was placed over her mouth as she tried to stop her giggles. Allen lifted his right hand off her left, bringing it over to her chin where he lifted her gaze up from the wood towards him.

"Lenalee," Allen began as he lost himself in the royal purple of her eyes. "I... Would you..."

Mentally, Allen told himself, _It's just a sentence. Stop stammering! But... what if Lavi was wrong? Would this be the end to our friendship?_

A soft chuckle snapped Allen out of his thoughts. There was a hint of humour found in the expression Lenalee gave to him. Swiftly, Lenalee raised a finger to his lips.

"I know what you want to say, Allen," she told him. "I know."

Unspoken words were heard through the expression in the other's eyes and unknowingly, they had lost themselves in the other's gaze. The distance between their faces narrowed; their foreheads soon touched. Allen had his eyes closed and when he opened them, it was burning with renewed determination.

"Lenalee," Allen whispered. "I love you. Ever since you brought me out of my shell, my life had never been better."

Lenalee kept her eyes closed as she sealed the gap between them. Releasing him a moment later, she murmured, "I love you too, Allen. I'm thankful that you kept your promise. You made me feel that my existence in this world isn't for naught; you saved me too, Allen."

Then, as the pair stood under the sea of stars, they shared another kiss. This time it was not forced, and it was not trickery. It was the whole hearted feelings of the two placed into that simple gesture; it was the beginning of a wonderful relationship.

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**Thanks for reading to the end!**

**Some slight notes: In the story when i mentioned about Allen's traumatising experience, the scarring refers to both his eye and his hand. In this case, Allen's left hand is red. Like, skin burn... you know... *gulps.**

**Reviews are greatly appreciated. Thanks much!**


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